MILAN — After avoiding the dreaded playoffs, the “real work” begins now for Italy and coach Luciano Spalletti.

And that features all the things from drones and smartphone apps to dinners and troublesome matches.

Italy booked its spot in subsequent yr’s European Championship with a 0-0 draw in opposition to Ukraine on Monday. A loss would have consigned the defending champion to the playoffs – a nightmare for a nation that missed out on the previous two World Cups due to playoff defeats to Sweden and North Macedonia.

Qualification was the minimal that was anticipated of Spalletti when he took over following Roberto Mancini’s shock resignation lower than a month earlier than September’s worldwide matches.

However, he began his tenure with a disappointing attract North Macedonia earlier than getting Italy again on monitor with a victory over Ukraine and enjoying just like the Napoli staff he had led to the Serie A title a couple of months beforehand.

“It’s not easy to come in and immediately make the right choices, some things I learned after I started this new job and now I think I know a bit more,” Spalletti stated after Monday’s match. “I got here right here to qualify, to not discover excuses if we didn’t.

PHOTOS: Dinners, drones and apps: Spalletti's plan for bettering Italy after securing spot at Euro 2024

“And the real work starts now, now I can really get working. When I accepted the role, I knew that I had to qualify.”

With one thing to work towards subsequent summer season, Spalletti is planning extra modifications to the way in which the nationwide staff operates. He has already launched an app that can permit the gamers to look at video lectures and tactical evaluation even when they're away from the Italy coaching camp.

He added on Monday that they'll now additionally begin coaching with a drone to make sure the Italy workers can add the very best photographs.

Spalletti additionally has in thoughts a extra fundamental methodology for Italy to enhance: attending to know his gamers. And he stated he is not going to wait till the subsequent worldwide break in March to take action.

“With the national team we want to try to get as close as possible to what happens at a club,” Spalletti added. “We wish to keep involved, have the likelihood to speak to one another and meet one another a number of instances. I'll go to look at staff coaching periods after which go for dinner with them to ask for his or her opinions.

“We have serious players in this Italy team and I want to get to know them without that pressure of needing the result. Now I can get closer to them because they also have things to tell us.”

To assist his groups nonetheless additional, Spalletti is hoping to schedule matches for March in opposition to robust opposition.

“I will ask for difficult friendly matches, the most difficult,” he stated. “That’s also because many of these players need to get experience of playing against top-level opponents, many of them don’t play in European competition and so where would they build up this experience if not in these matches.”

The final time Italy went to the European Championship after failing to qualify for the World Cup, it gained the event - beating England within the last at Wembley Stadium two years in the past.

Next yr it'll have one other probability at redemption.

“Now comes the fun part,” Spalletti stated with a broad smile.

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